Ayodhya Dispute: Mediation panel given time till August 15 to find 'amicable solution'

The Supreme Court on Friday granted time till August 15 to the three-member mediation panel in Ayodhya land dispute case to submit its report on the issue. The mediation panel headed by Justice Fakkir Mohamed Ibrahim (FMI) Kalifulla had sought time extension to find and an amicable solution of the politically-sensitive issue.

During the hearing, that barely lasted for three minutes, a five-judge constitutional bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi agreed to the panel's demand, saying that there was no harm in giving them more time as the case has been pending for many years.

"If the mediators are optimistic about the result and are seeking time till August 15, what is the harm in granting time? This issue has been pending for years and years. Why should we not grant time," the CJI said.

The bench also comprising Justices SA Bobde, DY Chandrachud, Ashok Bhushan and S Abdul Nazeer told the counsel appearing for the parties that the progress made by the mediation panel will remain confidential and not be shared with them. 

"we're not going to tell you what progress has been made, that’s confidential," the Supreme Court said.

On March 8, the Supreme Court had constitued a three-member mediation panel comprising Justice Fakkir Mohamed Ibrahim (FMI) Kalifulla, Senior advocate Sriram Panchu and Sri Sri RaviShankar to find an amicable solution to the decades old Ram Janmabhoomi-Babari Masjid title dispute.

The top court had asked them to submit their first status report in four weeks and final report for the ‘permanent solution’ in two months. The decision was taken by the five-judge Constitution Bench while hearing a bunch of petitions against the 2010 Allahabad High Court judgment, delivered in four civil suits, that the 2.77-acre land in Ayodhya be divided equally among the three parties—the Sunni Waqf Board, the Nirmohi Akhara and Ram Lalla.